The National Federation of Independent Business this week said Ohio could lose 2,999 to 5,345 jobs by 2022 because of a fee the law will impose on insurance companies, an expense widely expected to be passed through to consumers as higher premiums. The so-called Health Insurance Tax would increase premiums $5,000 over the period for policies purchased in the fully insured market, where 88 percent of small businesses buy their coverage, the group says.
The projected jobs loss would be registered in a state where the labor force is about 5.7 million.
The NFIB, a vocal small-business association, also says small companies would lose a cumulative $1.5 billion in sales over 10 years as a result of the fee.